By T.J. Ripley, AIRS Staff Writer
Even though a recent study suggested that any two Web pages are only separated by 19 clicks, it sure doesn't seem that way when you're on the Internet. Once you find a candidate's page you usually have to do a lot more searching to find similarly qualified people. Even though the Web is all about connectivity, the right connections are often difficult to find. Wouldn't it be nice if there was an easy way to link to lots more pages just like the one your candidate posted?
WebRings, a division of Yahoo!, is trying to make that possible by providing people with a simple way to link their Web pages to those with similar themes. People who belong to the ring can connect with their peers and increase traffic to their sites. Surfers like us can easily find more information relevant to our searches. It's free and can make connecting on the Web a lot less frustrating for everyone.
Here's how WebRings work. A ring is established and maintained by a ringmaster, someone who has a Web page about a particular subject. That person then invites others with an interest in that topic to join the ring. Each person who joins adds special links to his or her Web page that identify it as part of the ring and allow visitors to jump to another page within the ring. The Web pages don't necessarily reside on one particular server, like they do at GeoCities or Tripod, they can be anywhere on the Web. The special links connect the pages wherever they are located.
It's a virtual community of sorts - one in which the topics are often highly specialized. You don't have to search all over the Web looking for people with the same interests, talents or skill sets; they have banded together on their own.
The WebRing organization maintains a list of the more than 80,000 rings. There are two ways you can look for rings that interest you - through a search box or browsing a directory of Web ring topics. Both of these methods are available on the homepage.
The search box allows you to enter keywords to search through all the listings at once. A search for rings containing the word employment brought up such rings as the Police Employment Web Ring, Aviation Web ring and the IBEW ring.
The directory is organized into categories much like Yahoo. It makes it easy to drill down through the listings to find appropriate places to look for people with the experience and skills you need. For example, under the Computers and Internet heading there are links to rings devoted to ASP, Powerbuilder Developers, Cold Fusion and a ring called the Alliance of Women HTML Educators.
Not all rings will necessarily yield scores of links; some rings are composed of only one Web site. But many rings are filled with people who are connected with their peers and motivated enough to provide valuable information to the community.
So the next time you're looking for a candidate, try WebRings. You might be able to reduce those 19 degrees of separation and you'll certainly find links to Kevin Bacon.
-- T.J. Ripley is a journalist and Web explorer for AIRS, the global leader in Internet recruitment, tools, news and information. This article is reprinted by permission from AIRS, a global leader in Internet recruitment, tools, news and information. For more information on AIRS, please go to: http://www.CollegeRecruiter.com/pages/airs.php. Copyright © Hanover Capital Management Corporation 1997-2001. All Rights Reserved
